Life After Meteor
by Adrianics
Summary: UPDATED AT LAST: Chapter 7 focuses on memories of young Alex and Rikku. Very, very slight VincentYuffie.
1. Default Chapter

Life After Meteor- By Adrian Wilson  
  
Eh, just another 'Happy Family' fic, but I'll try my best. Please review. Beware that there will be a couple of angsty flashbacks.  
  
"Cloud, look!"  
  
I was an idiot.  
  
"It's so beautiful!"  
  
Such an idiot.  
  
Why?  
  
Why didn't I tell her?  
  
What an opportunity.  
  
Gone.  
  
Wasted.  
  
Down the drain.  
  
"I want to meet...You."  
  
Such cryptic words.  
  
What did they mean?  
  
Did she love me?  
  
Or not?  
  
Heh, I guess none of that matters now.  
  
I'm happy.  
  
I got a wife, a son, a nice little house in Nibelheim.  
  
So, I've got a good life here.  
  
Right?  
  
Let me introduce you to the family...  
  
(CHANGE OF POV- NOW GOES TO THIRD PERSON)  
  
Cloud sighed as he looked out of the window of his small house.  
  
"Cloud?" Cloud tuned around, and saw the smiling face of his wife.  
  
"Hey, Tifa."  
  
"You seem upset. What's wrong?"  
  
"Nothing, I was just... thinking."  
  
"About Aeris?"  
  
"Yeah..."  
  
"I don't blame you. After all, she did save the whole planet."  
  
Cloud just gave a little sigh, which Tifa had learnt meant that he wanted to be left alone.  
  
"Fine, I'll leave you alone." Tifa walked out, an angry expression on her face.  
  
"Tifa, wait." Cloud stopped his wife from walking away, and looked at her, blushing a little. "I'm sorry, Tifa, It's just..."  
  
Tifa smiled. "It's okay. I understand, Cloud. You and Aeris were very close."  
  
"Yeah..." He paused and looked at his wife's smiling face. She was struggling to hold back the laughter. "Hey!"  
  
Tifa giggled slightly. "What?"  
  
"Are you suggesting...?"  
  
Their conversation was interrupted by a loud scream upstairs. "DADDY!!"  
  
Tifa sighed, but she still had a smile on her face. "Oh dear. Alexanders' up." She looked at Cloud with a look he was all too familiar with.  
  
"I'll go take care of it." Cloud ran up the stairs and into his four year son's bedroom, where the young boy was crying, holding the sheets close to himself. "Hey, hey..." Cloud put a hand on his son's shoulder. "What's wrong?"  
  
"DADDY!" The young boy literally threw himself onto Cloud's chest as soon as he sat on the bed. "It was awful! I had a nightmare!"  
  
Cloud couldn't help but smile as he put an arm around his hysterical son. "Why don't you tell me what it was about?"  
  
"There was this giant rock, and it was gonna hit the earth!"  
  
Cloud raised an eyebrow before smiling again. "Come on, pal. That'll never happen."  
  
Alexander looked at him with happy eyes. "Yeah, you're right. I'm sorry for botherin' you."  
  
"You know I don't mind. Hey, I think lunch is nearly ready. Wanna come?"  
  
"Yeah!"  
  
Cloud hoisted Alex off the bed and onto this shoulders, something that he knew Alex loved. His son was almost a mirror image of him, with spiky, sharp hair, only it was black instead of blonde. When Cloud walked into the kitchen, Tifa smiled at just how much Cloud had lightened up since they had beaten Sephiroth. "Hey, Tifa, what's for lunch?"  
  
Tifa giggled and shook her head. "I made some sandwiches!"  
  
Cloud turned to Alexander. "Your moms' not much of a cook!" Alexander laughed loudly.  
  
Tifa crossed her arms. "Alex, could you please leave? Me and dad need to talk alone for a while."  
  
Alexander giggled again as Cloud put him back onto the floor, and he ran out of the kitchen, Tifa slamming the door. Cloud backed away. "Come on, it was just a joke!" He sheepishly scratched the back of his head.  
  
Tifa just smiled widely. "I've got some good news. Care to guess what it is?"  
  
"You know I hate all this..."  
  
"Just try and guess."  
  
" I don't know..."  
  
"You really don't have a clue? Alright, I'll tell you."  
  
Tifa walked forward and grabbed Cloud's hands. "I'm pregnant again."  
  
Cloud's face froze. "What?"  
  
"We're gonna have another kid!" Cloud just rubbed his eyes. "What's wrong? Aren't you glad?"  
  
"Well, yeah. But how do we explain it to Alexander?"  
  
"Leave that to me." Tifa then walked out, leaving Cloud by himself in the kitchen. He walked over to the window, staring at his reflection.  
  
"Wow... Another kid..." He thought to himself. "I wonder... Will I have another son, or maybe a girl...?" He scratched his head in wonder. "Can we afford this...?" He walked out of the kitchen and into the Living Room, where Tifa had Alexander on her knee.  
  
"Alex, there's something I feel you should know..."  
  
Alex looked at his mom with his chocolate brown eyes. "What is it?" His voice, which was trickly and high, like his mothers', always made the hearts of everyone around him melt.  
  
Tifa smiled before clearing her throat. "Mommy has a little baby growing inside her..."  
  
Alex gasped. "You're replacing me?"  
  
"No, no!" Tifa said, putting a hand on Alex's shoulder. "It's just..."  
  
"DADDY!" Alex leapt off of Tifa's lap and ran straight into Cloud. "Please! Don't let mummy replace me!"  
  
Cloud scoffed a little before holding Alex close to him. "Relax, buddy." His voice was the only thing that could soothe Alex, which made Tifa feel jealous. "We aren't replacing you, just having another kid..."  
  
Alex looked at his dad with pleading eyes. "Why? Aren't I good enough?"  
  
Cloud scratched the back of his head again, an obvious sign of being uncomfortable. "Alex, the reason we're having another kid is because we think our family will be even better once it's bigger." He then leant in and began to whisper into Alex's ear. "Plus, there'll be another kid to take the blame when you get into trouble."  
  
Alex smiled widely. "Alright! When does this kid arrive?"  
  
Tifa got up and rubbed her stomach, her cheeks going slightly red. "Well, in about 7 months." Alex sighed, and Cloud began whispering to him again.  
  
"Over the next few months, mom will be getting really fat, so try not to make her feel bad, okay?" Alex giggled again, and Tifa folded her arms.  
  
"It's getting late." Tifa said, giving Cloud a playful look. "I think we should go to bed."  
  
Alex ran up to Tifa, plowing into her. This was his attempt at a hug. "Okay, okay." Tifa said, hugging him back. "There's gonna have to be less of that over the next seven months." Alex then ran straight upstairs, leaving Cloud and Tifa by themselves. Tifa bit her index finger, tears falling down her eyes.  
  
"Hey, what's wrong?" Cloud was taken aback by this.  
  
"We're gonna have another kid..."  
  
Cloud stepped forward. "And you're crying because...?"  
  
Tifa flung herself into Cloud's arms. "Another kid!" It was then that Cloud realized that she was smiling, and he hugged her back, smiling and nodding. "We're gonna have a little girl, Cloud... We're gonna..."  
  
Cloud stared off into the distance. "Yeah, I know."  
  
As soon as they broke off, Tifa just sat on the couch, rubbing her stomach. "I just know we're gonna have a girl..."  
  
Cloud sat down next to her. "Can we afford this...?"  
  
Tifa gasped. "You're right... What can we do...?"  
  
Cloud sat down next to her and began to rub her hand. "I'll ask chief for a raise."  
  
Tifa looked at Cloud with those brown eyes he could never say 'No' to. "Do you really think he'll say 'yes'?"  
  
Cloud grabbed Tifa's hands tightly. "I KNOW he'll say yes." He said with a smile.  
  
Tifa and Cloud then shared another hug, before Tifa yawned loudly. "Tired? Let's go to bed." Cloud said before lifting Tifa off the couch, just like he did when they moved into their house for the first time. Cloud held Tifa so that his arms balanced her legs and head, and their lips pressed against each other passionately.  
  
[FLASHBACK]  
  
"Cloud, can I talk to you...?"  
  
Cloud was taken aback by Tifa's unusually upset, nervous expression. "Sure, what's up?"  
  
Tifa looked at the ground and twiddled her fingers nervously. "Do you... I mean, have you ever thought of starting a family?"  
  
Cloud's eyes bulged. "What do you mean?"  
  
Tifa's eyes began to fill with tears. "Cloud, that day... The day before we confronted Sephiroth..."  
  
Cloud took a suspicious glance at Tifa. "What are you trying to say...?"  
  
Tifa sobbed loudly. "Cloud, I'm pregnant!"  
  
The bombshell. Cloud felt a million thoughts going through his head. "You- You can't be..."  
  
"Cloud..." "Tifa..."  
  
Tifa stepped forward and grabbed Cloud's hands, but Cloud broke free and began to walk off. Tears began to fall down Tifa's white shirt. "I thought you would be happy..."  
  
[END FLASHBACK]  
  
Cloud slowly opened his eyes, and realized he was in bed by himself. "Tifa?" He looked around the room, but saw no one. "Tifa, where are you?" He suddenly heard some horrid noises coming from the bathroom. "Oh..." he suddenly realized where Tifa was. He ran downstairs as fast as he could, and saw Alex in the kitchen.  
  
"Hiya, dad." Alex said while eating his breakfast.  
  
"Morning, pal. Have you seen mom?"  
  
"Yeah, she's in the bathroom. She's sick or something."  
  
Cloud began to say something, but Tifa stumbled in, clutching her stomach, her eyes red with tears. At the sight of Alex, however, she forced a smile. "M-morning."  
  
"You okay, mom?"  
  
Tifa struggled to sit down, using the chair for balance. "Yeah, this happens a lot to women like me."  
  
Cloud put a hand on Tifa's shoulder. "How would you two like to visit Yuffie and Rikku?"  
  
Alex beamed widely. "Yeah!"  
  
Cloud, Alex and Tifa approached Yuffie's house and knocked on the door. It was a subtle, average house in Wutai. When the door opened, a very happy 20 year old greeted the three. "Alex!" Yuffie picked up Alex just like Tifa would. "Wow, you've gotten big, haven't ya, squirt?" Alex blushed sheepishly.  
  
"Hi, Yuffie." Tifa said, slightly overwhelmed at how cheerful Yuffie was.  
  
Yuffie put Alex back on the ground. "I bet you'd like to see Rikku!" Alex nodded. "Rikku!"  
  
A four year old girl, who was pretty much a mirror image of Yuffie, came slowly down the stairs. "What is it, mommy?"  
  
"Alex is here to see you!"  
  
Tifa was jealous of Yuffie. The two of them got pregnant around the same time, except Yuffie never told anyone who Rikku's father was, and she raised her by herself. Rikku was a sweet girl, but she was also strong in mind; She never cried. She cared for other people, and she was polite. She walked up to Alex and smiled. "Hi, Alex!" Alex just scratched the back of his head, much like Cloud did.  
  
Cloud gave Alex a gentle nudge. "Go on, say something!"  
  
Alex gulped. "H-Hi, Rikku. What's up...?"  
  
"We've got a new slide in the back yard! Wanna go play?"  
  
"Yeah!"  
  
As Alex and Rikku ran outside, Yuffie smiled and turned to Cloud. "Y'Know, those two are probably gonna get married in a few years."  
  
Cloud laughed. "Get outta here."  
  
Yuffie sat the three of them down in the kitchen of her relatively small house. "So, what have you come round for?"  
  
Tifa looked shocked. "What? We just wanted to say 'hi'."  
  
Yuffie just smiled and shook her head. "Don't be like that. I think we all know you're here for a reason. Have you come to ask who Rikku's father is again?"  
  
Tifa looked at her feet. "No, we're here to tell you that we're gonna have another kid."  
  
Yuffie chuckled. "Well done with that one."  
  
[FLASHBACK]  
  
"Reno, can I talk to you?"  
  
Reno looked at Yuffie sceptically. "What do you want?"  
  
"Reno, I'm gonna have a baby."  
  
Reno turned around and flicked his hair. "I don't think so."  
  
Yuffie gasped. "What?! Why...?"  
  
"Because, Yuffie, you showed as much range, charisma and excitement in bed as a Chocobo egg. Goodbye."  
  
[/FLASHBACK]  
  
Yuffie stared off into the distance. "Yeah, I made a massive mistake."  
  
Tifa looked at her as if she was a whole new person. "What do you mean?"  
  
Yuffie smiled grimly. "I was sixteen, and I slept with a man we all detested, and didn't cancel the baby." She looked outside at Rikku, who was playing happily with Alex. "Heh. The only reason I kept the baby was because I wanted to prove a point to him. I'm still not sure it was the right decision..."  
  
Cloud looked at Tifa, then at Yuffie again. "Don't you love Rikku?"  
  
"Of course. I wouldn't be a proper woman if I didn't love my daughter, would I?"  
  
Cloud stood up. "Thanks for having us over."  
  
"No problem. Come back in a couple of months."  
  
Tifa went into the garden. "ALEX! WE'RE GOING!"  
  
"Aww... I don't wanna go..."  
  
Rikku hugged Alex, which completely took him by surprise. Tifa smiled. "See ya, Alex!"  
  
"Yeah..."  
  
When the family arrived home, Cloud took Alex up to bed. "You know, Alex, in ten years, you'll be glad you met Rikku."  
  
"What do you mean, daddy?"  
  
Cloud smiled, and looked at Tifa, who was standing outside. "You'll see soon enough."  
  
As soon as Cloud walked out of the room, Tifa put her hands around his neck. "You are a fantastic father..."  
  
Cloud put an arm around his pregnant wife. "Yeah, thanks."  
  
Tifa immediately picked up on the tone of Cloud's voice. "Is something wrong?"  
  
Cloud looked back at his son. "Do you think that Alex is a little too... 'Advanced' for a four year old?"  
  
Tifa looked at the ground. "Cloud, we've already talked about this..."  
  
"I'm just sayin', could it be that he's got Jeneva in him?"  
  
Tifa looked at Cloud, tears threatening to form in her brown eyes. "Cloud, if you really love our son, you'll know the answer to that question."  
  
"..." Cloud just looked at Tifa. "Sorry."  
  
Tifa put her head on Cloud's shoulders, tears rolling down her cheeks. "I'm sorry, Cloud... It's just..."  
  
Cloud put a finger on Tifa's lips. "I know, I know. Don't worry about it."  
  
Tifa started thumping on Cloud's shoulder, tears continuing to flow. "DAMN... STUPID...HORMONES!"  
  
So, what did you lot think? Please r n' r. Fenko! ^_^ 


	2. Ultrasound

Life After Meteor part 2- By Adrian Wilson 

OK, this is almost completely a flashback chapter, focusing on Yuffie and Tifa's [past] pregnancies.

Tifa and Cloud were asleep in each other's arms, like they were every night. Tifa suddenly woke up with a start, her head rested against Cloud's chest. She looked at him. "Alex looks just like him..."

[FLASHBACK]

Tifa sat at the table in her home, just staring into the distance. She had just told Cloud she was pregnant, and now she didn't know where he was. She didn't know what she was going to do. She wasn't the kind of person to just kill the kid, but without a father to help her...

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. Getting up was a struggle for Tifa because of how tight her favourite top was now. When she opened the door, she was greeted by Yuffie, who looked like she had been crying all morning. "Yuffie, what's wrong?"

Yuffie sighed. "Can... I come in...?"

"Sure..."

Tifa stood aside as Yuffie walked in. Tifa opened her mouth to say something, but Yuffie burst into tears. "Yuffie...?"

Yuffie threw herself into Tifa's arms, sobbing hysterically. "I haven't had a period for two months, I-I-I've been throwing up all morning, my favourite clothes don't fit any more..." Tifa could barely understand what she was saying; it was all babble. However, the general message got across.

"Are you... Pregnant?"

Yuffie broke away from Tifa and began to thump the wall with her fist. "Why? WHY DID I SLEEP WITH HIM?! IT-WAS-ONE-TIME!" With the last sentence, she hit the wall with every word.

Tifa grabbed Yuffie's hand, which was now red and slightly swollen. "Listen." She was now calm. "Without sounding cliché, one time is all it takes. Take it from me."

Yuffie gasped and looked at Tifa, the tears stopping. "Are you pregnant too?"

[/FLASHBACK]

***

It was morning at Yuffie's house, where the 20 year old and her young daughter were having breakfast. Yuffie didn't have a job; Her dad died shortly before Rikku was conceived, and she inherited his massive fortune. Rikku suddenly stopped eating her breakfast and looked down at her feet, which Yuffie immediately picked up on. "What's wrong, kiddo?"

Rikku, who had inherited Reno's green eyes and silky, chestnut-brown hair, looked at her mother with a mixture of curiosity and despair. "Who's that man who always comes over when Alex does?"

Yuffie's bright look, as well as her heart, sunk. "Well, um, hi-his name is Cloud..."

Rikku looked confused. "But why is he ALWAYS with Alex and Aunty Tifa?"

 "Because he's his daddy..." Yuffie knew, as soon as those words escaped her mouth, that she had made a massive mistake.

Rikku then grabbed one of Yuffie's hands. "Why don't I have a daddy?"

Yuffie bit down on her finger, and looked at Rikku. She just didn't know how to tell her. How did she tell her that her father was a perverted, evil man who had seen her as no more than an inconvenience? "It's...complicated, kid. I don't know how to put it..." She then looked hopelessly at Rikku, knowing that she'd have to tell her the truth someday.

***

"Tifa?" For the fifth time in a row, Cloud woke up with Tifa nowhere to be seen. "Tif---" He then heard retching sounds coming from the bathroom in their bedroom. He knocked on the locked door. "It's me." He said almost instantly. The door unlocked, and he was greeted by the brief glimpse of Tifa crawling back over the toilet. "Jeez, Tifa. That baby's causing you a lot more hassle than Alex did."

Tifa gave Cloud a hand gesture before lifting her head up. "Is Alex up yet?"

"Nope."

"Alright." She then began to gag. "I think that's it." Cloud helped her up and put an arm around her as they went downstairs. "Thanks..."

"No problem. Listen, you're about three months, right?"

"Yeah..."

"Do you think we should make an appointment with Shera?" Tifa nodded and smiled. As they sat down for breakfast, they heard a massive noise from upstairs, followed by a thumping sound coming down the stairs. They both rolled their eyes and smiled as Alex came charging in. "Morning, Alex!" Tifa said with a smile.

"Mornin', mom." Alex's voice was just like his moms'; Sweet and soft, almost like a whisper. Alex had inherited just about everything from his mom. As he took his seat next to Cloud, Cloud couldn't help but notice that his expression was slightly unhappy.

"What's wrong, pal?"

Alex started swinging his legs, as his feet couldn't touch the floor when he sat down. "When my brother or sister comes, are you gonna stop loving me?"

Cloud smiled and ruffled Alex's hair. "Whatever gives you that idea?"

Alex sniffed, and Cloud's smile faded as he noticed that tears were forming in Alex's brown eyes, the same eyes that won Cloud over when he was born. "Well, I just think that you two might be getting tired of me...That's why you're getting another kid..."

Cloud sighed and looked at Tifa helplessly, but she just shrugged. Cloud picked up Alex and put him on his knee. "Alex, the reason we're making our family bigger is because we want there to be... More love around here, and you'll have a friend all the time."

Alex sniffed again, and began to smile. "All the time...?"

"All the time."

Alex beamed widely, his smile another thing he got off Tifa. "Okay!" As he got down and began to get his breakfast, Tifa flashed Cloud a smile.

***

"You are BRILLIANT, Cloud. How do you do it?"

Cloud looked at the sky as he and his wife prepared to go to Rocket Town. "You know, I really don't know."

"Daddy, where are we going?" Cloud sighed again; Ultrasound wasn't exactly an easy thing to explain to a four year old.

"We're going to one of our friends, to see how well our new kid is growing inside your mom, pal. It's nothing to worry about." As Cloud attached a Chocobo Lure materia to his armband and pulled a Green out of his pocket, Tifa stopped him.

"Wait, Cloud. Are you sure going by Chocobo is a good idea with the baby...?"

Cloud put the green back in his pocket. "You're probably right... Um... I know! Let's take that new train they built!"

In the four years since Alex had been born, there had been a lot of changes in the world. There was now a train, which was built by the people in North Corel, running throughout the continent. Also, Holy had completely destroyed the plate above the slums, meaning everyone could live under the sky.

As the Strife family approached Shera and Cid's house, Cloud began to think. If his newborn baby did indeed turn out to be a girl, what would he do? He had no problem raising Alex, but that was because he was_ male_. Tifa had frequently had to turn to Cloud for help with Alex, but if a girl were to come into the family...

"Cloud?" Cloud snapped out of his train of thought as they arrived at Shera's house.

Shera had gotten pregnant before Cloud had even met her. She was so excited at the prospect of raising a family with Cid that they got engaged immediately. Back at that time, however, the doctors in Rocket Town were sub-par at best. She went for a routine check-up, and then miscarried 5 days later. She was so horrified that the hospital had failed to notice anything wrong with her baby that she spent the next five years learning how to become a pregnancy and birth specialist herself. She had been an incredible help to Tifa when she was pregnant with Alex.

Cid answered the door almost as soon as Cloud began knocking. Cloud was surprised at what he saw; Cid was clean-shaven, and didn't have a cigarette in his mouth. "Cloud, ol' pal! How ya doin'?"

"I'm fine, thanks." Cloud said as he accepted a tough handshake from Cid.

Cid looked down at Alex, who was clinging to Clouds leg, completely red in the face, as if he were afraid to talk to Cid. "Who's the little guy?"

Could gently removed Alex from his leg and ruffled his hair. "He's my son, Cid. His name is 'Alex'."

Cid looked at Alex again. "Heh, I can see what he gets from you two. Especially you, Cloud." Cid was right, as Alex had almost the exact same hair as Cloud, and even wore replicas of Clouds battle clothes, from time to time. "Hi, little fella!"

Alex looked at the floor and didn't say anything, before Cloud gave him a gentle nudge.

"Don't worry about him, Alex. He's a friend of ours."

"Hi, Mister Cid..." Alex was still not looking at Cid, and his voice was very quiet.

Cid smiled and knelt down. "How old are ya, kid?"

Alex smiled, looked at Cid for the first time, and held up four fingers. "This many!"

Cid stood back up. "Wow, the kid's smart! You been home schoolin' him?"

Tifa looked at Alex, than at Cid. "No, we usually just read him stuff and whatnot."

Cid smiled. "Sure. I'll bet you're here to see Shera, aren't ya?"

Tifa nodded. "Yeah, that's right."

***

Shera was working on a computer when they walked in. "Well, if it isn't Tifa? How are you?" Shera was quite possibly the most polite person Tifa knew. She then looked at Alex, who seemed to be gaining some trust in these strangers. "Don't tell me this is Alex! I haven't seen him since he was born!"

Alex looked at Tifa. "Mommy, is this lady your friend too?"

Tifa smiled. "Yes, honey, she helped you be born."

Shera looked at Tifa and smiled. "So, what's up?"

Tifa looked at Alex, and then at Cloud. "I'm here for an ultrasound."

"Oh, are you pregnant again?"

Tifa laughed to herself. "No, sometimes I just like to have ultrasounds for fun."

Shera laughed. "OK. Follow me to my clinic. It's on the other side of town, if you remember."

Tifa and Shera walked out the room, and Alex tried to follow them. However, Cloud stopped him. Alex looked at him angrily. "Why can't I go with mommy?"

"She just needs to go alone." Cloud said, looking at Cid. "Don't worry, I'm sure we can find something fun for you to do."

Cid clicked his fingers "I know! The Tiny Bronco! I've got it out back!"

Alex's look brightened, but Cloud's didn't. "The Tiny Bronco...? Are you sure that's safe?"

Cid looked at Cloud as if he was a whole new person. "Did you just ask if it's safe? You rode on the damn thing several times, man!"

Cloud shook his head. "I'm sorry, paternal instincts. That's a great idea." As they began to walk out the back, Cloud gave Cid a little nudge. "Please, try to keep the swearing to a minimum, Cid."

Cid chuckled. "You really do sound like a father, you know that?"

***

"WOW!" Alex really didn't seem to mind that it was a pink airplane. He had never seen one in his life.

Cloud picked up on Alex's excited look. "Do ya like it, pal?"

"Yeah!"

Cid smiled. "Do you know what it is?"

"No..." Cloud smiled.

"You're gonna love it, buddy." Cloud gave Alex a lift into the plane using his shoulders before getting in himself. Eight people could fit in this aircraft, which Cid had fixed since it was broken. Alex sat in the front with Cid, Cloud sitting directly behind him.

"Alex, put the seatbelt on."

Cid looked at Cloud and shook his head pitifully before starting the plane. It vibrated heavily, which made Alex nervous.

"Daddy, what's happening?!"

Cloud leaned forward and put a hand on Alex's shoulder. "Don't worry, son, you're perfectly safe in this thing." Because of all the noise and vibration, he had to yell.

"HERE WE GO!" There was a slight stutter as the plane took off. As the noise went down, the trip was surprisingly smooth. "You enjoying yourself, Alex?"

Alex looked out the window in absolute awe. "Yeah..."

Cloud decided to look out too. He could see the Golden Saucer. "Good view, huh?"

***

When the Bronco landed, the three of them had been gone for about two hours. Cloud hopped out of the plane, helped Alex out, and then realized how long they'd been gone. "Uh-oh, I hope Tifa's not mad..."

When Cloud walked into Cid's house, he saw Tifa quizzically rubbing her stomach.

"Are you sure, Shera?"

"Yes, Tifa. I'm sure." She then handed Tifa a piece of paper, which Tifa studied, looking slightly upset.

Cloud stood forward. "Tifa...?"

Tifa gasped. "Cloud! Umm..."

Cloud noticed Tifa's expression. "Is something wrong?"

"That depends. Look." Tifa then handed Cloud the piece of paper. It was Tifa's ultrasound.

Cloud looked at the ultrasound carefully. "What's... wrong? I can't see anything wrong..."

Tifa suddenly grabbed Cloud's hands. "I'M HAVING A GIRL!"

Cloud smiled, and that slowly turned into a laugh. "Wow... A little girl."

Shera then started to explain to Alex why Tifa and Cloud were both crying tears of joy while wrapped in each other's arms.

***

[FLASHBACK]

Tifa was six months along when Barrett came to visit her. She spent most of her days sitting on the couch of her Nibelheim home, eating peanut butter straight out of a jar. Compared to Yuffie, whose cravings could only be satisfied by celery and chocolate sauce, she thought she had it easy. She had, however, gained almost twenty-seven pounds because of her pregnancy. Yuffie had only gained ten. As there was a knock on the door, Tifa struggled to get up. "What the Hell did you do to me, Cloud...?" She said to herself as she rubbed her now bulbous stomach. She smiled at the figure that greeted her when she opened the door. "Hey, Barrett."

Barrett smiled back. "How are you?"

Tifa rubbed her back. "Sore."

Barrett sipped at the coffee Tifa had made for him. "You're sure you don't want me to track down Cloud?"

Tifa just drummed her fingers on the table, her eyes stinging from holding back tears. "No, Barrett... He doesn't care."

Barrett sighed and leaned back on his chair. "He does care, Tifa... You are carrying his child, after all."

Tifa clenched her eyes shut. "Well, that didn't help before, did it?!" She gasped after realising she had just shouted. "I'm sorry, Barrett..."

Barrett shook his head. "It's alwight, Tifa. The hormones, the loneliness, I understand."

***

Whereas Tifa had Barrett, Yuffie had Vincent. She had originally turned to her father for help, but he had blown her off, calling her a variety of insulting names.

Vincent looked at Yuffie, who was dipping a celery stick into chocolate sauce. "I can't believe this." He said as Yuffie took a bite and groaned. "Do you really want that?"

Yuffie smiled. "No," she then rubbed her stomach. "But the baby does. I can't stand all the stuff it keeps wanting."

Vincent smiled, a far sight from the cold, heartless man Yuffie once knew. "You feeling okay?"

"A little tired..."

"Why don't you go to bed?"

Yuffie looked at the clock in her kitchen. "Come on, Vincent. It's only three o'clock."

Vincent shrugged. "Well, it still might not be a bad idea..."

"I guess you're right."

"Any time you need me, just gimme a call."

[/FLASHBACK]

***

Alex charged into his home, a massive smile on his face, with his mother and father following close behind. Tifa grabbed Cloud and kissed him. When they broke off, Cloud grinned at her. "What was that for?"

"You gave me a girl! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!"

Cloud gratefully returned Tifa's 'gifts'. "That's alright."

***

Thank you, thank you! Hope you enjoyed that! Chap 3 will be angsty, with Yuffie deciding it's time she took responsibility for her daughter! You'll see!


	3. Confrontations

Part three of Life After Meteor- By Adrian Wilson 

***

"So, have you thought of any names yet?" Tifa sat at the kitchen table with her husband, munching on the peanuts she had started to crave.

"No." Cloud lied. He had only one name in mind for his little baby girl, but he was worried it would make his wife upset. "Have you?"

Tifa stopped eating for a second. "No, I haven't." She then started to eat another peanut, but she winced.

Cloud sighed. "Not craving that anymore?"

Tifa got up and walked over to the fridge. "Nah. What've we got in here?" She then began to sniff at the contents of the fridge, occasionally stopping to wince or smile.

Alex then walked in. "What's mommy doing?" He asked as he took his trademark place next to Cloud.

"The baby inside her wants something, but mommy doesn't know what it is. It's nothing to worry about."

Tifa then smiled and pulled out an entire watermelon. She cut it in half before she sat down and began to eat it. "Hmm, it's missing something..." She then went back into the fridge and began to rummage around. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.

"I'll get that. Don't move, you two." Cloud was always overprotective of his wife and son.

He was slightly surprised at the figure that greeted him. "Yuffie?"

Yuffie's expression was far from upbeat, and Rikku was holding her hand. "I need to talk to Tifa. May we come in?"

"Sure..."

"Yuffie!" Tifa seemed equally surprised to see her best friend. Alex and Rikku exchanged excited looks. "What brings you here?"

Yuffie sat down on the chair opposite to Tifa, which was the same one Cloud would normally sit in, so that she was next to Alex. "We need to talk." She said in a soft voice. She then turned to Cloud. "Alone."

Cloud nodded. "Okay guys, they need some alone time. Let's go." Alex's expression was still excited, but Rikku's was an expression of regret as she left her mother behind.

Tifa sat back down, a jar of jam in her hand. One of Yuffie's eyebrows slowly raised itself as Tifa spread the jam on the watermelon. She took a bite and smiled. "Oh yeah..." She then noticed Yuffie's expression. "Oh, sorry." She embarrassedly rubbed her mouth. "What did you want to talk about?"

Yuffie was silent for a minute, but Tifa didn't cut in. Yuffie sniffed as tears began to form in her eyes. "Rikku asked me something this morning..."

Tifa leaned forward so that she was closer to Yuffie. "What?"

"She asked me why she didn't have a daddy..." Yuffie thumped the table with her fist, but Tifa's look remained unchanged. "What am I meant to tell her? WHAT?!"

"Why don't you tell her the truth?"

Yuffie laughed sarcastically. "Oh, yeah! Great idea! I'll tell my daughter that her daddy was a man who slept with me once and ditched me when the going got tough!"

Tifa still remained calm, despite this outburst. "Who is her father?" Yuffie gasped. "Come on, I'll track him down for you."

Yuffie looked at the ground. "Reno."

Tifa's expression finally changed. "What?"

Yuffie looked at Tifa. "She's Reno's daughter."

Tifa was about to yell, but she noticed Yuffie's genuinely remorseful expression. "Why did you do it?"

"I don't know! He took advantage of me after Aeris died! I was upset!"

"I understand, Yuffie. Say no more."

Yuffie sniffed again. "Can you really find him? It's time I faced my responsibilities as a parent."

***

"You guys like being outside, right?" Cloud had taken the two four-year-olds into downtown Nibelheim, browsing the local shops. Rikku started to tug on his shirt.

"Mister Cloud, can we have a look in the clothes shop?"

Cloud smiled. "Sure, and call me Cloud."

Alex then gave his father a nudge. "Daddy, do we hafta go to the clothes store?"

Cloud knelt down next to his son and began to whisper in his ear. "Come on, pal. Rikku is our guest, so be a little polite. If you don't complain, I'll buy you an ice cream."

Alex growled, frustrated at this arrangement. "Aww..."

***

"Do you want me to go in with you?" Tifa put her hand on Yuffie's shoulder, but Yuffie gently took it off, her gaze never leaving the giant building in front of them.

Tears of anger, anticipation and fear started to form in Yuffie's eyes. "No." she said softly. "This is something I've gotta do alone."

Tifa nodded, and hugged Yuffie from behind. "I'm here if you need me."

Yuffie started to walk towards the door to the building, but as she reached for the handle on one of the doors, she suddenly stopped, shaking all over. She sighed and walked in.

A huge room greeted her, with a secretary sitting behind a desk. There were several paintings hanging on the wall, and there was a soft violin piece playing softly in the background. Yuffie thought for a minute. "Am I in the right place?"

"Can I help you?" The secretary finally talked, looking at Yuffie with annoyance.

Yuffie sighed again. "Sorry. I'm looking for Reno Turk..."

The secretary opened a notebook and flipped through the pages. "Yeah, he's free. Who are you?"

Yuffie thought about what she should say.

_"I'm the mother of Reno's daughter."_

"Um, just an old friend..."

The secretary smiled. "Floor twelve."

"Thank you."

Yuffie began to walk up the stairs, her heart beating furiously in her chest._"Come on, girl...Do this for Rikku..." _

She got to floor twelve within two minutes. She inhaled deeply and opened the door.

And gasped at what she saw.

"E-Elena?"

Elena looked up, her body concealed behind her desk. There was an office behind her, as well as an office perpendicular to her. "Yuffie...?" She clenched her eyes to try and focus on Yuffie more. "Is that you?" Yuffie didn't move, but slowly reached for her pocket, about to get out the thing she always kept in case of emergency. Elena, however, noticed this. "No, no! There's no need for that!"

Yuffie looked at Elena, obviously confused. "What?"

Elena stood up. She was wearing a suit very similar to the one she wore when she and the other Turks fought Yuffie and her friends. "The Turks disbanded. Me and Reno are more interested in work and Zell than we are in fighting."

"'Zell?'"

_"Oh Gawd..."_

Almost on cue, the door from the perpendicular office opened. Yuffie slowly turned her head, and saw a young boy of no more than three, with dirty blonde hair and green eyes. "Mama, hungry..." He then pointed at his mouth.

"Aww, Zell..." Elena then picked him up, his face nuzzling into her shoulder.

Yuffie froze. "You and Reno have a son?"

Elena smiled and stroked Zell's mop-like hair. "Yeah, what's the big deal?"

Yuffie's fists clenched, and she forced a smile. "Oh, nothing. I've got a daughter, too."

"Really? Who's the dad?"

Yuffie's forced smile lengthened. "No-one you would know."

"Oh. What are you here for, anyway?"

Yuffie's smile faded. "Can I talk to Reno?"

Elena placed Zell on the floor and entered the office behind her. Yuffie looked at Zell, especially at his green eyes. _"They look just like Rikku's eyes..." _ she thought to herself.

Elena came out a couple of seconds later. "Reno's on the phone at the moment. He'll be done in ten minutes, if you'd like to wait." 

Yuffie nodded blankly, and sat on the bench leaning against the wall. After about three minutes of staring into space, listening to the clicking sound of Elena's keyboard, Zell toddled his way over to her. Yuffie once again found herself drawn in by his saucer-like eyes.

"Lady..." Zell said quietly, and Yuffie smiled to herself.

_ "Look how small his vocabulary is... Am I really that good a parent to Rikku?"_

Elena smiled as well. "He's a little shy. Say 'hello' to Yuffie, sweetie!"

"Yuffee..." Zell whispered, and Yuffie smiled wider, not realizing at that moment that this boy was her half-son, and Rikku's half-brother.

Reno's cold, dry voice spoke up on the intercom a few minutes later. "I'm done with the phone conversation. Send her in." Yuffie shuddered; it was the first time in almost five years she had heard his voice. She stood up, trying to show as much confidence as possible, and slowly opened the door to Reno's office.

***

"Why?"

"I really don't think I should..." Cloud sighed as Rikku looked at him with her emerald-green eyes.

"I really want it, Mister Cloud..."

Cloud looked at the price tag on the dress Rikku had picked out; 500 Gil.

"Holy Hell..." He knelt down in front of Rikku. "Listen, it's really up to your mommy, and she isn't here. I'm sorry, but I can't buy you this..."

Rikku shrugged. "Alright."

Cloud scratched the back of his head, remembering some of the tantrums Alex had thrown. _"What discipline for a four year old..."_

Alex sat on a chair near to Cloud, his legs swinging, as if independent from his body. "Is Rikku done, daddy?"

Cloud looked at Rikku, who nodded. "Yes. Let's get going, son."

As the three of them started to head back, Alex pulled on Cloud's pants leg. "Daddy..."

Cloud rubbed his eyes. He wasn't used to going out with his son. "What is it?"

Alex looked at the ground, as if he was afraid of the man he adored so much. "You promised me an ice-cream if I behaved..." Rikku's look brightened.

Cloud smiled. "Yeah, sure."

Cloud looked at his son with utter disbelief. The way Alex ate ice cream was horrendous. "Alex..."

Alex, who literally had the ice cream right in his face, stopped eating, his mouth and nose covered with the stuff. "What?"

Cloud's gaze fixed on Alex's best shirt, which was now caked in ice cream. "Try to slow down a little, okay?" He then saw Alex's bright gaze turn into one of large gloom. Cloud put a hand on his son's shoulder. "I'm not telling you off, okay?" Alex always looked disappointed with himself when Cloud told him off.

Rikku, however, had not gotten a spot of ice cream on her. She just licked and licked, careful not to spill a drop.

Cloud stared at Rikku, his eyes sparkling with curiosity._ "How? How has Yuffie raised her so well by herself? She's younger than me and Tifa..."_

"CLOUD!" Cloud jumped slightly, causing Alex to drop his ice cream on the floor of the café. Cloud growled at this mystery voice as he saw tears welling up in Alex' big, brown eyes.

"Who did that?" If there was one thing Cloud didn't like, it was seeing his son get upset. "When I get my hands on him, I'll..."

"You'll what?" Cloud yelped, but quickly covered his mouth embarrassedly as he realized whom the voice belonged to.

"B-Barret?!"

"Long time no see." Barret looked at Alex, and saw what had happened. "Gee, I'm sorry. Tell ya what, Alex. Here's five gil. Go buy yourself another one."

As Alex leapt up and hurried towards the counter, Barret sat down next to Cloud. "What's up, spiky?"

"Not much. Where's Marlene?"

"She's with a friend. She hasn't had much trouble making friends since she started school three years ago."

Cloud looked at Alex. He had forgotten that he was due to start school soon.

"Who's the girl?"

Cloud broke out of his trance. "Oh, that's Rikku. She's Yuffie's daughter."

Barret's look suddenly became serious. "What?"

"She's Yuffie's daughter." Cloud repeated.

"YUFFIE'S daughter?!"

Cloud started to look uneasy. "Yeah, that's right."

"Well, who's her father?"

"She-She never told us..."

"WHAT?!" Barret leapt up. "She never TOLD you?!"

"What the hell have I done..." Cloud said to himself.

***

"Well, well." Reno smirked and leant back on his chair. "Look who it is."

Yuffie looked straight at Reno, battling with the tears. "Reno..."

"What do you want from me?"

Yuffie looked at the floor, unable to look at Reno. "My...our...d-d-d-d..."

Reno finally got up. "Well?"

Yuffie finally broke down. "OUR DAUGHTER, RENO! I HAVE OUR DAUGHTER!"

Reno's eyes widened momentarily, but he relaxed. "Our daughter? You didn't cancel it?"

Yuffie walked up to the desk Reno was standing behind, and thumped it with her fist. "SHE'S A 'SHE', NOT AN 'IT', RENO!"

Reno smiled, but not a normal, easygoing one. "Why should I care?" Yuffie gasped. "You're a mistake, and so is that little kid of yours. I only slept with you to infiltrate into your little operation. It didn't work, and that's that. You were part of a plan, you silly girl."

Yuffie shook her head, tears finally streaking down her face. "No..."

Reno sat back down in his chair again. "You were the one who was in love, not me. You were the one who decided not to abort the baby, not me. You, Yuffie Kisaragi, were the one who decided to raise the damned thing, not me. Now, if you excuse me, I have work to do."

Yuffie's knuckles were white, which matched the colour of her face. "I think Elena should know." Reno's expression suddenly changed, and he looked at Yuffie. "That's right, Reno... I think I'll bring your daughter here. I'm sure she and Zell will get along fine."

Reno stood up again, and looked at Yuffie angrily. "You leave Zell and Elena out of this. The child is your business, not mine."

Yuffie turned and began to walk away. However, she stopped just before leaving. "I'm not asking much, Reno. Just meet your daughter tomorrow, and accept her existence." Reno growled.

"GET OUT!" His voice pierced Yuffie's ears, and she rushed out of there as fast as she could.

Elena stood outside, frozen, with Zell clinging onto her leg, crying.

They had heard everything.

~*~*~*

Ooh, sorry for the cliff ^^ Stay tuned!


	4. Tragedy

Part 4 of Life After Meteor- By Adrian Wilson. 

There is one thing in this chapter you people might not like. You'll see.

***

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Elena..."

"WHY?!" Elena thumped the desk in front of her with her fist, causing a painful looking throb to spring up. "Did you think you could just cruise along, as if it never happened?"

Reno looked at the floor, trying his best to keep a calm front. "Elena, it meant nothing..."

Elena made a noise that almost sounded like a laugh. "Reno, that just makes it worse..." Tears now began to form. "WHY CAN'T YOU UNDERSTAND THAT MAKES IT WORSE?!"

Zell came out of the other office. "Mama..."

Elena glared at Zell. "CAN'T YOU SEE I'M BUSY?!" Zell's bottom lip quivered, and he ran back into the office. Elena sighed and rubbed her eyes. "I'm gonna take care of him. We'll talk later."

As Elena walked into the office, Reno stared out of the high-story window. He loved his wife, and his son. He admitted it to no one but him or her, however. If Yuffie thought she could just waltz in and destroy his family life, she had another thing coming. He smirked and got out his PHS, his plan slowly forming in his mind.

***

Cloud stirred slightly in his sleep, his mind again filled with thoughts of danger, mainly from his inexplicable fear for the safety of his wife, his future daughter, and, of course, his son. He was dreaming, but his hand unconsciously gripped the bed sheets. "Cloud... I'm coming for you..." The voice was a familiar one, brutal and cold at the same time.

Sephiroth.

Cloud stood in the void, looking at his surroundings. "Wha...? Tifa? Alex?" He clenched his fists.

"Hello, Cloud." Sephiroth's drawl of a voice broke the void. "So nice to see you again."

Cloud growled. "What do you want from me, Sephiroth?"

Sephiroth smirked. "That's a nice wife you got there, Cloud."

Cloud's eyes widened, and fear rose in his stomach. "TIFA?!"

"Oh, yes... Let's bring her in, shall we?"

Sephiroth reached back, and flung Tifa in, causing her to land on her knees. "Cloud, help me..." She said pathetically.

Cloud ran forward. "TIFA!" As his hand reached out for Tifa's, however, an unseen force knocked him back. "NO!"

Sephiroth flung a smug glance at Cloud as he drew out his sword. "Take one last look at her, Cloud."

Cloud began to desperately fling himself at the unseen force. "SEPHIROTH, STOP!" He then began to scream as Sephiroth stabbed Tifa, his blade going in, and then out. In, then out. Cloud watched the blade every time, before Tifa slumped to the floor.

Sephiroth then looked at Cloud again with his uncaring eyes. "This is just the beginning, Cloud." An evil smile then crept on his lips. "I'll get you, your wife, and that little brat of yours."

*********************

Cloud yelled so loudly that he must have woken up the entire house. He looked at his surroundings. He was in his bedroom, and Tifa was lying next to him. He rubbed his eyes with relief. "It was just a dream..."

Tifa stirred. "Cloud?" Her voice sounded full of gravel.

Cloud noticed that. "You okay, Tifa?"

Tifa looked at Cloud. Her face was white. "I don't feel well Cloud, and I don't mean that I'm sick. Something doesn't seem right."

"What do you mean?"

Tifa started to breath heavily. "M-m-m-my stomach, Cloud... I don't like this..."

_"That's where Sephiroth stabbed her in my dream..."_

_"I'm gonna get you, your wife, and that little brat of yours..."_

"What? Does it hurt?"

Tifa pulled away the covers and winced, clutching her stomach. "Yes, Cloud... Oh God... Please, please..."

Cloud leapt out of bed. "Tifa, just relax. I'll run you a bath."

 _"Get you, Cloud..."_

Cloud grabbed at his hair as he turned the taps. "It can't be..."

_ "Your wife..."_

"It's gotta be a coincidence..."

_ "And that little brat of yours..."_

Cloud's eyes widened. "What's that son of a bitch gonna do to Alex...?" He cancelled out this thought immediately. "It's not true." He told himself. "Alex is safe as long as I'm around."

Cloud walked back into the bedroom he and Tifa shared. "You feeling okay Tif--- Oh my God..." Cloud began to shake. Tifa was now sitting up, cowering against the headrest of the bed. Her face was covered in sweat, and the sheets...

Blood.

There was blood all over the sheets.

"Cloud... Oh my God, no..."

***************

The PHS rang loudly, waking up the Rocket Town couple.

"Who the hell is that? It's one o'clock in the morning!" Cid growled, fumbling for the light switch.

Shera rubbed her eyes. "Oy..." She pulled on a robe and began to walk downstairs, only realizing that it must be an emergency when she reached the actual PHS. She picked it up, and pressed the 'receive' button, her drowsiness not getting in the way. "Shera."

"Shera? It's Cloud." The other voice at the end clearly wasn't calm.

"Cloud?" Any remaining drowsiness now disappeared. "What's wrong?"

"It's Tifa, she doesn't feel well. She's said that she doesn't feel sick, just like something's wrong... She's been bleeding a lot..."

_"She's miscarrying, Cloud..."_ Shera almost said. "Has she been having cramps all day?"

"Yeah, she's been saying that."

Shera paused, unable to tell Cloud the truth. "Cloud, I'm afraid that she's beyond help..."

"What do you mean?"

"...Cloud, she's having a miscarriage. This means that the baby didn't survive beyond three months. I'm sorry. All you can do is make her comfortable. Cloud?"

Cloud, of course, knew exactly what a miscarriage was, and had dropped the PHS as soon as the word had left Shera's mouth. "No..." Images of what his daughter might have looked like flooded in his mind. Images of a blonde girl with shiny blue eyes and an optimistic attitude slowly shattered, being replaced with Alex. "Alex..."

********

"I'm sorry, Tifa..."

"It's not your fault, Cloud." Tifa sat in the hot bath, her eyes completely glazed over. There was still a little mingle of blood in the water. "These things happen, and no-one knows why."

_"I know why, darling; Sephiroth stabbed you in the stomach. He's going after Alex next, and there's not a thing we can do about it because we don't know when he'll strike. We are screwed. Screwed big time."_

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry..." Cloud grabbed one of Tifa's hands, which were cold in spite of the hot bath. "We'll make it through this, I promise."

"I know we will, Cloud..."

******

Yuffie was in the garden of her home with her daughter when it happened, an innocent enough tapping on her front door. She was greeted by a large man in a posh suit. "Yuffie Kisaragi?" He asked.

"Yes?"

The man forced himself in and showed Yuffie a contract. "I am here on behalf of Reno and Elena Turk, madam. It's about your daughter."

Yuffie looked at the man with wonder. "Rikku? What about her?"

The man leaned forward. "Reno wants custody of your little girl. Full custody."

Yuffie laughed. "You've gotta be kidding! He didn't want anything to do with her!"

The man's expression remained firm. "This is no joke, Miss Kisaragi. I'll have you know that Mr. Turk has full rights to your daughter. You, after all, failed to even tell him you had a daughter before he formed his business."

Yuffie's smile fell. "Well, that had nothing to do with..."

"Not only that, but Reno claims that you have been committing extortion by threatening to go to the press with this news, which clearly shows you don't think of the child's well-being."

"You can't be serious!"

The man adjusted his glasses. "Not only that, but you don't have a job. How do we know that you've got everything required to raise a young child without any steady income?"

Yuffie finally snapped and punched the man in the stomach. "You and that rat bastard stay the fuck away from us!"

The man just smiled and staggered out. As soon as the door slammed behind him, he grinned and got out his PHS. "Yeah boss." He told the man on the other end. "I got it all. We're set."

******

"Come on, Tifa, you have to eat something..." Cloud stared at Tifa, who wasn't even touching the breakfast Cloud had prepared for her.

Tifa took the fork in between two fingers and gave the meal a couple of pokes before throwing the fork on the table and sobbing. "It's not fair, Cloud... What did I do wrong? WHAT?!"

Cloud got up and walked over to Tifa, putting a hand on her shoulder. "You didn't do anything, Tif. These things just happen. It's not your fault."

Tifa then leapt up. "BUT WHY TO ME, CLOUD?!"

Cloud then backed away slightly. "Tif, come on..."

Tifa began to shriek. "WHY? WHY? WHY? WHY??" She then burst into tears and fell on her knees, her voice becoming weak and pathetic. "It's...just not fair..."

Cloud then bent down and wrapped his arms around her. "I know it's not..." He then helped her up, never removing his arms. She then began to cry into his shoulder, saying 'It's not fair' over and over. Cloud began to pat her on the back. "I know, I know..." It barely dawned on him just how similar this situation was to when he had first discovered Tifa was pregnant. Cloud gulped, his voice wavering ever so slightly. "We'll make it, Tifa... I promise..."

****

Sorry about this angsty chapter, and believe me, it isn't going to get any better. Please r & r.


	5. Memories

Part 5 of Life After Meteor- By Adrian Wilson 

"Tifa, all I'm asking is that you just eat something..." Cloud had somehow calmed Tifa down, but she still simply poked occasionally at her breakfast, her eyes red and sore from the tears. Cloud sighed and looked at his wife with sorrow. _"I don't think Tifa will ever be the same..."_ He rubbed his eyes. "Tifa, I know that you're hurting about what happened, but..." He stopped himself before he said anything stupid. '_There's gotta be something that'll cheer her up_' "Do you wanna go for a walk? Just you, me, and Alex? You know, just like we used to?" Tifa stopped poking at her breakfast. Cloud decided to follow up. "Come on, you remember how we used to walk around Nibelheim with Alex on my shoulders? And he would giggle and giggle until he got the hiccups?"

Tifa looked at Cloud directly in the eyes. "Cloud..." her voice was still weak. "I don't know if I'm ready to go outside just yet...I still feel really empty inside...Just give me a few days..."

Cloud just looked down at the table. How was he gonna explain it to Alex? Almost on cue, he heard that trademark bounding down the stairs. '_Oh no..._'

Alex charged into the kitchen, a bright look etched on his face, almost as if he didn't have a care in the world. "Mornin', Dad!"

Cloud shakily tried to smile, but failed miserably. "Morning, son..." He said softly.

Alex giggled before tilting his head towards Tifa, his smile refusing to leave his face. "Hey, mummy!" Tifa never looked up from her breakfast. "Mummy...?" Alex turned to look at Cloud, his smile finally gone. "Is she okay...?"

Cloud felt his nerves shatter. Normally, he was good at explaining things to Alex, but this time, he had nothing. He just looked down at his feet in a blind hope that the problem would solve itself.

Alex slowly walked over to Tifa. "Mummy?"

Tifa looked up, and slowly turned her head toward her four-year-old-son. Her look seemed to change, if only a little.

Alex then walked up to Tifa so he was standing right next to her. "Mummy?"

Tifa looked at Alex for a couple more seconds, before sobbing and pulling him into a tight hug. "Oh, Alex..." Tifa knelt down, and held Alex's head onto her shoulder. "Alex..." Her tears began to stain Alex's pyjamas. "Please, don't ever leave me..."

Alex wrapped his tiny little arms around his mother's neck, creating nothing short of an embrace. "I won't, mama..." He hadn't called Tifa 'mama' since he was two.

Tifa continued to cry as Cloud looked on, moved by the scene in front of him, the true power of parental bonds being displayed.

*~*~*~*~

"Alex is amazing, isn't he?" Cloud was sitting on the couple's bed, waiting for Tifa to finish getting ready. She was madly applying makeup under her eyes to try and cover up the cracks formed in her skin from her tears. She just nodded at his question. Cloud sighed, plucked up all the courage he had, and finally asked her what had been on his mind. "You really want another kid, don't you?"

Tifa stopped and looked at Cloud. "Yes. Yes, I would." She said simply.

Cloud swivelled on the bed. "Maybe...What happened was a warning...?" Tifa looked at Cloud with utter disbelief. "I mean, you know, now we can plan it carefully, 'cause I would love to have another little boy with you, and now we can think it over, I can ask my boss for the raise, and everything we need to do..."

Tifa paused, the same utterly flabbergasted look etched on her face. "Another _boy_?!" She smiled. "I thought I made it quite clear we were having a girl next!"

Cloud chuckled. '_Looks like she's over it now..._' "I'm going to work tomorrow. I'll ask then."

Tifa's smile went down slightly. "Cloud, Alex needs to start school soon...It's a new government law, you know."

"Where is the school, anyway?" Cloud asked.

"It's right here in Nibelhiem, so he'll be close." Tifa said with a smile. "It's just...I'll be alone in this house from now on...Yuffie's planning on sending Rikku there, you know."

"And how exactly is she planning on getting Rikku there?"

Tifa giggled. "Same way she gets here- the aircraft she bought from Cid."

"She owns an aircraft?"

"That's right."

Cloud just shook his head. "Sure. Shall we take a look at this school?" Tifa nodded, and Cloud smirked. "Still wanna go on that walk?"

*~*~*~*~

Alex's smile looked set to stretch straight off his face as he gripped onto his father's hand as the family walked through the quaint town of Nibelhiem. Tifa smiled at this.

"So, where is this school, anyway?" Cloud asked.

"Where the old Shinra mansion used to be." Tifa said. "It looks very good. From the outside, at least."

Cloud chuckled. "Show some optimism, Tif."

Cloud felt something as he walked into the building, but he didn't know what. They had just walked through the main door, and saw a corridor that stretched out in three different directions. A woman there greeted them with a smile. "Mister and missus Strife, my name is Nadia. I'll be Alex's teacher in a few months."

Cloud smiled and shook the young woman's hand. "Nice to meet you." Tifa then did the same.

"If you would like to follow me?" Nadia said with an infectious smile.

*~*~*

Cloud, Tifa and Alex had spent a good hour looking at that school. As they went outside, Cloud couldn't help but notice that Tifa looked upset. He put an arm around her. "Tifa...?"

Tifa threw herself onto Cloud's shoulder. "Both you and Alex will be out of the house soon...I'll be all by myself..."

Cloud held her close. "You'll be fine...I promise..." He then looked down at Alex, who was looking at the two of them with awe. "What do you feel like doing now, Alex?"

Alex beamed. "Can we go to the park, daddy?"

Cloud looked playfully at Tifa, who was still in his arms. "What do you say, Tif?"

Tifa grinned, and removed herself from Cloud's grip. "He's the boss."

*~*~*~*

Alex's high-pitched giggle echoed around the park as he slid down the slide yet again, and got caught by Cloud at the bottom. Cloud then lifted him up, holding him high above his head, and Tifa insanely worried for a split second that Alex would hurt himself, but he just kept giggling, his face lit up. Tifa looked at Cloud and saw one of her favourite features of him: His fatherly pride. He set Alex on the ground, and Alex sped off in the direction of the swings. Before Cloud could get to him, Tifa grabbed him by the elbow. "Cloud, please don't let him get hurt...I couldn't bear it if something happened to him..."

Cloud began to reply, but his eyes bulged as what Sephiroth said to him in his dream came back to him. '_I'm gonna get you, your wife, and that little brat of yours..._' Cloud stuttered, "W-w-w-well, don't worry, I won't..." Before he stared into Tifa's eyes for a moment, trying his best to consider whether or not to tell her the truth.

"Daddy!" Alex's wide smile and loud voice snapped Cloud out of his trance. "I wanna fly!" Cloud winked at Tifa before heading over to Alex's swing. He grabbed the swing seat and gently gave his beloved son a push. Alex began his infectious giggle once again as his feet slowly began to become unable to touch the ground.

"Higher, daddy! Higher!" Alex screamed, getting slightly short of breath.

"You've got it, little man!" Cloud continued to gently push Alex, a small smile creeping onto his lips.

Tifa watched on with content. _"You've changed, Cloud. I remember how you first felt about Alex."_

Cloud stopped the swing, and Alex got off and piled into his father's stomach, the way he normally did to Tifa. "I love you, daddy!"

Cloud was taken aback. Alex had never hugged him by himself before. Cloud had hugged Alex, sure, but never visa-versa...

Cloud returned the hug, kneeling down to Alex's level. "...I love you too, son."

A salty tear formed in Tifa's eye as she surveyed this scene. This was the first time since Alex had been born that anything like this had ever happened. _Alex had told Cloud he loved him._ She still remembered the first time he crawled, the first time he waved, the first time he stood up, his first word, and his first steps. Now, she had one more memory of her beloved son. And Cloud...He had just admitted his love for his son... Tifa always had a hunch that Cloud adored Alex as much as she did, but he never actually admitted it to anyone. She slowly began to cry at the bitter irony that the family would soon be split up, at the one moment when the love and bonds were as strong as they had ever been. All she could do at that point was watch.

*~*~*~*

They were in the exact same park when it happened. Alex was one and a half, give or take, and had began to stand up, and had even taken a few steps, once. Tifa held Alex in her arms, her hands gripping around his waist. She smiled and offered the boy to Cloud, who smiled back, albeit weakly, and accepted the gurgling child in his arms himself. "So..." Cloud said, smiling at his son, who seemed to be trying to sleep. "The sky's nice today, isn't it?" Alex responded to this by yawning and smacking his lips. "Ya know, I remember when the people of Midgar couldn't see the sky..." Cloud said, turning to Tifa. "I wonder what Marlene thought when she saw the sky for the first time?"

_Alex opened his tiny little eyelids. "Sky..." His voice was so cutely high-pitched._

_Cloud gasped and looked down at his son, but he was rewarded with a boy who was clearly fast asleep. "Tifa, did he...?" Cloud looked over at Tifa, who was smiling, but at the same time looked as though she was about to burst into tears._

*~*~*~*

Cloud rubbed his head. Holy Hell, he _hated_ his job. Working at the Gold Saucer brought in a lot of money, but dammit, he saved the planet. Why did he have to do something so embarrassing? "_Cloud_," His boss's voice said over the intercom, effectively shattering his trance. "_We've got a sucker just waitin' to battle ya!_" Cloud sighed and stood up, his classic purple battle suit rubbing against his skin. The door to the Battle Arena opened, and a young ninja entered. Cloud just sighed as the ninja came charging towards him. He then got his Ultima Weapon out and smacked the ninja away. He then threw his arms up in the air and began to walk towards the bosses' office.

*~*~*~*

Dio smiled and looked at Cloud again. "You want a raise?"

Cloud looked sheepishly at the floor, as Dio was parading around in only his underpants. "Yeah, um...My wife and I are...Planning on having another kid, so we need some more income..."

Dio laughed. 'I'll do better than that, old buddy...I'll give you a promotion!" Cloud's eyes widened. "Sure, I mean, I'm retiring, after all...I need someone to take over as manager of the Battle Square...And I want you to be that someone, Cloud."

Cloud smiled. "I-I really don't know what to say..."

Dio put a hand on Cloud's shoulder. "Then don't say anything." Dio smiled and left the room, leaving Cloud absolutely stunned.

*~*~*~*

Tifa held the happily gurgling one-year-and-five-month-year-old boy high above her head as she sat on the floor amidst all the toys, which were scattered around randomly. Alex's hair had started to come in, it was quite tangled up for a boy his age, and you could tell it would be messy in his later years. Alex was also quite chubby, but Tifa knew this was normal. She sighed and looked at her watch. "Cloud, I'm gonna go get some lunch." Cloud nodded before moving over to his son. He was about to play with him before the phone rang. He groaned and got up, trudging over to the offending object.

_"Yeah? Oh, hi, boss..." Cloud rubbed his eyes. "Yeah...? Well, I...I understand, but boss, me and Tifa and my son were gonna spend this weekend together..." He felt like slamming his hand on the desk, as Dio was asking him to come into work. He noticed Alex grabbing onto a table and pulling himself up out of the corner of his eye. He shook this off, as Alex had been doing that non-stop recently._

_Then something else happened._

_Alex stayed up this time._

_Cloud nearly dropped the phone as Alex started towards him, making large, clumsy strides, barely staying in a straight line. Cloud stood there, shaking head to foot, as his boss started yelling his name down the phone. Alex tripped and fell onto Cloud's leg, gripping it for support. He then looked up at his dad with wide, saucer-like eyes, and smiled his gummy smile, his pushing-through baby teeth showing off like milk on his gums. "Da..." He said._

_Cloud swallowed hard before speaking calmly into the phone. "Sorry boss, my family comes first." He hung up firmly before Dio could object, deciding the wrath he would face on Monday would make up for it. He kept staring at his son, who was half-laughing, half gurgling at him. "TIFA, YOU GOTTA SEE THIS!" He yelled._

_Tifa ran into the living room, and gasped. "Alex, you..." She looked at Cloud. "Did he get there by himself?" Cloud nodded, and Tifa bit down on her lip, jealous that she had missed this clinical moment in her son's life._

_*~*~*~*_

Cloud stormed into his house with a massive grin on his face. Tifa walked up to him. "How was your d---" Ccloud grabbed her and swung her so that she was barely hovering above the ground. "Cloud, what---" Cloud shut her up by pressing his lips against hers. Tifa mumbled something, but eventually sunk into it, her jaw working in rhythm against his. When they finally broke off, Tifa gasped, struggling for breath. "What the Hell got into you?" She said with a smile.

Cloud's grin got ever wider. "I got promoted. You are now looking at the new owner of the Battle Square!"

Tifa giggled. "Well, aren't we important!"

Cloud stroked Tifa's long, silky hair. "You know, this means I can work from home pretty much whenever I want..."

Tifa gasped. "Really?"

Cloud shook his head. "Well, maybe not 'whenever I want', but I can come home a lot more now."

"Is there more pay?"

Cloud grabbed one of Tifa's hands. "Of course. Are you sure you wanna have another kid?"

Tifa pulled Cloud up by the hand he was holding and planted another kiss. Cloud sighed inwardly and started to lead Tifa up the stairs. They briefly broke off and Cloud mumbled, "Alex, what about Alex...?"

Tifa put her arms around his neck. "No worries, he's having his nap. We've got a couple of hours to spare..." They began kissing again, gently allowing themselves to fall onto their bed.

_I'll take that as a 'yes'..._

Well, there you go. I promised a light-hearted chapter in my profile, and here it is. Read this while you can, because the next three or so chapters will be full to the brim with angst. What is Reno planning? Is Sephiroth getting revenge from beyond the grave? You can only find out by continuing to read Life After Meteor! Expect chapter five before July 2004! Adrianics, Tuesday March 20th, completed at 7:21 AM English time.


	6. Bonding

Part Six of Life After Meteor- By Adrian Wilson 

Tifa smiled and began to trace a circle on Cloud's bare chest with her finger. They were lying in each other's arms in post-making love bliss. "Cloud, do you realize what might have just happened...Nine months from now, we could be having a girl..."

Cloud smiled and kissed her forehead. "Or a boy."

Tifa playfully digged him under the chin. "Don't count on it." She then snuggled up to Cloud as close as possible, and rested her head on his shoulder. Cloud held her close and rested his chin on her head. Both of them then slept.

Yuffie held her head in her hands. _This can't be happening..._ The letter in front of her described the full details of Reno's lawsuit. He was demanding full custody for Rikku. No weekend visits, no holidays, nothing for Yuffie. She needed a lawyer. Fast. She thumped the table with her fists, hot tears of pure anger at the injustice of the situation pouring down her face. He had exploited loopholes. _Since when does HE give a damn about our daughter?!_  She realized now just how much Rikku meant to her. She remembered everything at that one moment, everything from Rikku's first smile to the time that Yuffie finally realized, when Rikku was three, that she and her daughter looked almost exactly alike, save the hair and eyes. Nothing would take Rikku away from her. Nothing. She knew exactly who to call, even though it meant breaking the agreement that they had made shortly before Rikku was born. She walked out of the kitchen and made her way slowly up the stairs, intent on getting the PHS from her room. She pressed the memory button, and waited with baited breath for the person on the other end to answer. Finally, the ringing stopped. "...Vincent? It's Yuffie."

"Cloud...Come on, I'm trying to make you your lunch, here..." Tifa finally put down the knife as it became obvious that he was never going to stop kissing her neck. She turned around and allowed him one quick peck. "You're gonna be late for work, dear..."

Cloud smiled and kissed her cheek. "Please don't call me 'dear', dear." Tifa giggled and finished preparing his sandwiches. She then put them in a bag and handed them to him. "Have a good day, mister owner!"

Cloud walked by the stairs just in time to see his son, clad in pajamas, sleepily yawning and rubbing the sleep dust from his eyes. "Hiya, son."

"Mornin', Dad..." Alex said this almost out of routine now.

As Cloud left, Tifa walked up to her son and picked him up, perching him on her shoulder. "Listen, Alex, it's just you and me today...Is there anything you'd like to do?"

Alex yawned again. "Breakfast." He said simply. Tifa smiled contently and ruffled his black hair.

"You got it, champ."

Yuffie just sat on her couch, watching television with her young daughter, who was lying belly-down on the floor, her legs kicking at the air. Vincent was very surprised, and a bit angry, she thought, to hear from her, but had agreed to meet her in Kalm that afternoon. She looked down at her daughter, and remembered the first time she had smiled.

Yuffie could never have imagined how hard it would be. Thirty-two hours of painful, dehydrated labor, and now this. Her two-month-old daughter absolutely refused to stop crying. Yuffie sat her down on her lap and smiled. "Oh my, someone's in a pissy mood, aren't they?" She lifted up her shirt, praying that would solve the problem. It did, and Yuffie felt relief, plus some other feeling she would never be able to describe, as Rikku gently drank away. As Rikku finished, Yuffie held her high in the air above her, smiling her massive, infectious smile. Suddenly, out of nowhere, Rikku joined her, showing off her gums. Yuffie's eyes bulged. "Well, I didn't see THAT coming..."

Yuffie realized, at that point, while Rikku was busy watching some crappy kids cartoon, that she could never lose her. She scooped Rikku off the floor and balanced her on her knee, bouncing her slightly. Rikku smiled. Yuffie looked at her young daughter with pride. "Rikku, I love you...Ya know that? I love you with all my heart..."

Rikku hugged her mother around the neck. "I love you too, mummy..."

Yuffie began to cry, hugging Rikku as hard as she could without hurting her. "Nothing will split us up...I promise..."

"You're in a fair bit of trouble, aren't you?" Vincent asked, looking at Yuffie sadly.

Yuffie smiled grimly. "Yeah, a lot. What am I gonna do? I mean, I can't think of any arguments to fight against him with..."

Vincent rubbed his chin, clearly thinking. "Listen, how has the got the evidence to incriminate you?"

"Well, he audio-recorded a conversation I had with his attorney..."

Vincent's look brightened. "Audio-recorded, you say...? I wonder, could you record a confession from him?"

Yuffie smiled. "Yeah...Yeah! That might just work..."

"Yuffie, I will defend you at this trial to the best of my ability. But getting the truth out of him is a one hundred percent last resort, okay?" Vincent said, leaning back slightly in the chair at the Kalm Café.

Yuffie checked her watch. "I should get going. Rikku's been at my friend's long enough."

Vincent suddenly grabbed one of Yuffie's hands. "Yuffie, is it okay if I stay with you...? I wouldn't ask, it's just...I'm on the run from the Turk Squad again...They wanna arrest me for my past affiliations with Shinra..."

Yuffie blushed. "Well...Yeah, sure...I mean, we've got a room spare at home..."

Vincent smiled. "Appreciate it."

Tifa gazed lovingly at her young son as he messily scooped the cereal from out the bowl and into his mouth. His brown eyes (inherited from Tifa's mother) always seemed to sparkle with curiosity and, insanely enough, hope. Alex's gaze suddenly met Tifa's, and she responded by playfully sticking her tongue out. Alex giggled and stuck his out in response. Tifa was so happy at that moment, even without her husband. "Alex, are you sure there's nothing you want to do today?"

Alex looked down at his cereal again. "Gold Saucer?" He said without even looking at his mother.

Tifa smiled again. "Well, I'm not sure about that..." She then noticed the sparkle almost fading out of the young boy's eyes. "Do you wanna go on a walk?"

Alex beamed. "Sure!"

Tifa adored Alex's smile. She absolutely could never get tired of it. Whenever he smiled, she was reminded of how she herself would smile at that age, the way she smiled before her mother died. During the majority of her childhood (about age six onwards), all she wanted was a family. Now, she finally had one, and had never been happier.

Tifa decided a good venue for the walk would be the slightly marshy fields leading up to the Nibelhiem Chocobo ranch. Tifa couldn't help but smile at Alex as they walked, hand in hand, through the muddy, puddle-filled terrain. Alex was clearly utterly in love with all the nature around him, and he kept on dragging Tifa towards the latest tree, plant or animal he had just seen. She didn't mind explaining everything to him, though.

She then noticed that Alex had his sights set on a particularly large puddle. Alex tightened his grip on her hand and grinned at her. She knew that look, and she smiled back. "Alex, no!"

"COME ON, MAMA!" Alex screamed with delight as he charged towards it. Tifa yelled a playful 'NO!' before Alex dragged her in and began to splash, his tiny feet causing the murky water to splash up to Tifa's knees. Tifa was about to object, but she didn't want the smile to leave Alex's face, so she just laughed, waiting for Alex to get tired of it by himself. This took about three minutes, and the two of them left the puddle, both short of breath. It was quite possible that this was the happiest Tifa had ever been. She stroked her son's hair before lifting him off the ground in a gentle hug. Seeing Alex's smile made her smile even wider, and she looked deep into Alex's eyes, feeling some sort of mystic connection with her son. "Love you..."

Alex rested his head on Tifa's shoulder, placing one hand behind her neck and the other on her other shoulder. "Love you too, Mama."

She carried him all the way to the Chocobo farm.

Whereas Tifa was able to see over the fence, Alex had to be helped up, standing on one of the wodden rows that held the fence up. His eyes glistened with fresh curiosity as a Chocobo slowly made its' way towards him. His face quickly changed into one of fear as the Chocobo started to nuzzle at his sweatshirt. "Mama..."

Tifa reached into her bag and pulled out a Green she had bought before the trip. "Give him this, Alex."

Alex took the Green from her hand and timidly held it in front of the Chocobo. The Chocobo sniffed it before making a delighted 'wark' noise and snatching it out of the young boy's hand. As the Chocobo ate, Alex smiled again at his mother. "He likes it, mama! He likes it!"

Tifa ruffled Alex's messy hair. "That's 'cause it came from you, little man!" She put a gentle arm around her son's shoulder and they both happily watched the playful antics of the Chocobo in front of them.

Cloud rubbed his temple. It was his first day on the job, and he already had to deal with his first lawsuit. He leapt up out of his seat. "Melissa, why is this guy suing us?"

The attractive blond sighed. "He said that certain parts of the square weren't fair."

"What parts?"

"Well, he says that his weapon was broken, and his materia was disabled, and that his armour was shattered, and..."

Cloud held up a hand. "I understand. Why wasn't he warned about this stuff?"

"He was."

Cloud paused before he just shook his head in disbelief. "Then how can he sue us?" He then noticed Melissa was struggling to hold back her laughter. "What's so funny?"

Melissa giggled softly, using a hand to stifle her mouth. "Um, the said user will see you now..."

Cloud looked up at the large door, which very slowly opened, revealing a massive surprise.

"...Alex?!" Cloud moved out from behind his large desk. "Is that..."

Alex ran up to his dad and hugged him tightly round the waist. "Hey, daddy!"

Cloud knelt down and held Alex by the shoulders. "Don't tell me you were fighting in the Battle Arena!"

Alex looked at his dad brightly. "No, me n' mama went to see a ch-ch-ch-cho..."

"...Chocobo? You saw a Chocobo?"

Alex nodded and smiled. "Yeah!"

Cloud picked up Alex and put him on his shoulder before glaring at Melissa. "What's going on here?"

Cloud's young secretary just pointed at the door. "Look..."

Cloud's gaze turned to the door, which opened again. He gasped. "Tifa?"

Tifa ran up to Cloud and kissed him on the cheek. "Hiya, Cloud!"

Cloud's face flustered with confusion. "What are you two doing here?"

Tifa smiled. "Melissa here helped us organize a surprise first day celebration!" She then kissed Cloud on the lips. "So, surprise!"

Cloud could only laugh as his secretary winked at him.

Cid paced around his Rocket Town home, waiting patiently for his wife to return. "Come on, Shera, where are you...?" He swore to himself and lit a fresh cigarette. He took a drag and sighed. He couldn't get enough of cigarettes; all his problems seemed to breeze away as soon as he inhaled that sweet, sweet essence. He then dropped the butt on the floor and smothered it with his foot, feeling an unusual tingling in the tips of his fingers. He looked at them doubtfully, and before long, it felt like ants were crawling all the way up his arm. The cigarette dropped out of his mouth as he gasped in pain; it now felt like those ants were biting. Hard. He got down on one knee and clasped the area in his arm just below the elbow. He began to rasp, each grainy breath burning his throat. He began to feel dizzy and fell on the floor. He looked at the ceiling, whispered Shera's name, and slowly passed out.

I was thinking about including a Cid heart attack since I first started, ya know. Please R N' R.


	7. Pregnancy

Part Seven of Life After Meteor- By Adrian Wilson

Okay, I know I haven't updated this in... Holy shit, well over a year, but college has been insane.

Please R & R, you know the drill.

Sephiroth's voice broke the void. "Cloud...Cloud..."

Cloud awoke with a start, and saw Sephiroth's cruel, heartless eyes staring into his own. He tried to move, but couldn't. "Sephiroth..."

"I would suggest you take time to say goodbye to that little brat, Cloud...I will strike soon, and you will never see him again..."

"Daddy? Daddy?"

Cloud woke up suddenly, and shook his head. He found that he had fallen asleep in the hospital waiting room. He looked down and saw his son tugging his pants leg. "Alex...?" He shook off what he had just dreamt. "Alex, what's wrong?"

Alex looked as if he was ready to burst into tears. "Daddy, what's wrong with unka' Cid?"

Cloud picked Alex up and put him on his knee. "He had a heart attack, he'll be fine. The doctors will take care of him."

Alex sniffled. "But...But..." And then he did begin to cry.

Cloud was taken aback by this as Alex had barely known Cid for a month, but he held Alex tight. "He's gonna be okay, pal. Don't you worry bout a thing..."

Cloud looked beyond Alex, and saw Tifa sitting against the wall with her knees tucked up to her chest. "Tifa? You okay?"

Tifa sighed. "What if Cid dies...?" She said without even looking up.

Cloud frowned. "What is it with you two? I'm telling you, he'll be _fine_." Alex then sniffed loudly and began to whimper into Cloud's shoulder. Cloud gently patted his son on the back. "Cid's a tough guy, he'll pull through." Cloud then looked up at the clock, and realized that they had been in that waiting room for nearly three hours, and he had spent most of it asleep.

Suddenly, a tall doctor walked in. He looked experienced, as he had greying black hair. "Um, Mr and Mrs Stryfe?"

Cloud put Alex on the floor and stood up. "Yes?"

The doctor smiled. "I'm pleased to tell you that Mr. Highwind reacted very well to the surgery, and he will be fine. If you wish, you can visit him tomorrow."

Cloud smiled. "Thank you, doctor." Cloud knelt down to Alex's level. "Ya hear that? Uncle Cid's gonna be fine!"

Tifa stood forward. "Doctor, can I see you for a moment?"

"Sure thing, Mrs Stryfe."

As the doctor and Tifa walked out, Alex tried to follow them. When Cloud stopped him, Alex looked angrily at him.

"Alex," Cloud said, anticipating his son's question, "Mummy has to see the doctor alone."

"Okay." Alex said softly. He then said something Cloud hoped he would never, ever say. "Daddy, when is the baby coming?"

Every single nerve in Cloud's body was obliterated swiftly by his son's young voice. _Damn it..._ "Well, um, the thing about that is..." He then looked into his son's eyes, those bright, happy chocolate brown orbs, and realized he had to tell the truth.

Or not. "Well, we hope it will be some time next year." _I'll tell him someday..._

To Cloud's relief, Alex simply shrugged at this and turned his attention to one of the children's books lying on the table in the waiting room. Cloud grinned as he noticed his son going towards the _Charlie the Chocobo _book. He got up and joined his son. "You like chocobos, huh?"

Alex opened the book, and Cloud felt as if he had ignored him. Alex frowned as he began to stutter. "C-C-Ch-Ch-Char-Charlie..."

Cloud sat back down and helped Alex onto his lap. "You need some help, buddy?"

Alex beamed at his father as Cloud held the book so both of them could read it.

The door to the waiting room slowly opened, and Tifa came in. Her heart melted at the sight of her husband and son reading together.

Cloud looked up at Tifa with wonder, a look Alex often reflected. "What were you doing, Tifa?"

Tifa blushed a heavenly shade of pink. "Cloud, Alex, could you come with me?"

Tifa clutched Cloud and Alex's hands tightly as the doctor studied the test results.

"Mrs. Stryfe, I'm pleased to tell you that you're pregnant."

Tifa's face lit up and she pulled Cloud into a tight hug. Cloud hugged her back as the doctor said, "Would you like to know the gender?"

Cloud felt Tifa nod. "Yes, doctor. We would." He said.

Cloud also began to hear Tifa sobbing, but he managed to hear what the doctor said next:

"There's a 99 likelihood of it being a boy."

Tifa suddenly pushed Cloud back and stared hard at the doctor, tears still mingled in her eyes. "What did you just say?"

"A boy...The baby is almost definitely a boy."

Tifa looked at the doctor in disbelief before scowling at the floor. "Awww, that can't be right..."

The doctor looked at Cloud. "Is everything okay?"

Tifa threw her arms by her sides. "No, everything is NOT okay! I already have a boy, I'm supposed to be having a girl!"

Cloud sighed and rubbed his eyes. He gave Tifa a reassuring squeeze on the shoulder and said sympathetically to the doctor, "Don't worry, she'll get over it."

FLASHBACK

Alex's scream almost rocked the walls of the family's quaint, perfect little house. Cloud slowly propped himself up onto his elbows and tried to open his eyes, but to no avail. He had only finished a nine-hour shift at the Battle Square a few hours prior, and was so tired his head was swimming. He tried to concentrate, as he blearily thought Alex was making a rational demand rather than just screaming. He could just about hear the 'MAM', and he flopped back onto his pillow, mentally growling. Alex was now entering the 'terrible twos', and his language had developed enough for Cloud and Tifa to understand what he wanted when he was upset. 'Mam' meant he wanted Tifa, 'Da' meant he wanted Cloud. Cloud turned over and gently nudged his wife. "Tifa, Alex wants you."

Tifa rolled over and mumbled, "Wha time issit?"

"Dunno... 'Bout three I guess…" Cloud muttered back, his eyes stinging.

Tifa sighed, hugged her pillow to the side of her head, and smirked. "You know the rules."

Cloud groaned and forced himself up, knowing that he had agreed to tend to Alex whenever he awoke before five. He stumbled to Alex's room still in his pyjamas, and found a familiar sight.

Alex was awake in his crib, but he had grabbed the plastic bars and was rocking them back and forth, tears pouring down his face. He looked up at Cloud, and, if anything, seemed to cry louder. "NO, NO, NO, NO, NO!" He screamed.

Cloud rubbed his temples, muttered "Why me" to himself and went forward to pick up Alex to let him out. "Come on, then."

Alex fought, cried and resisted. "WANT MAM, WANT MAM, WANT MAM." He bellowed.

Cloud sighed and grabbed Alex anyway, holding his thrashing son as tightly as he could. "You hear this, Tifa? He doesn't like me!" Cloud bounced the child slightly, but it didn't help. "At least call your mother by her name." He smiled slightly and began to go downstairs. He went into the lounge and tried to put Alex on the floor. He barely had time to react before Alex, who had recently mastered walking, made a beeline for the stairs, still wailing for his mother. As his son clumsily made his way up the first couple of stairs, Cloud smiled in spite of himself.

"Nope, 'fraid not" He said, scooping his son up. This time, he decided not to take any chances. He went into the kitchen and put Alex into the high chair which he knew the youngster despised so much. Alex began to slam furiously on the table part of the chair with his tiny little fists, utter outrage expressed on his face. "Yeah, how'd you like that one, eh?" Cloud grinned.

Alex stopped waling, looked down, and then looked at Cloud with his infamous puppy dog eyes. "Want baba!" He said simply.

Cloud shook his head. "You don't get that until six. You know that."

Alex began to cry again, repeating 'want baba' until he was red in the face.

Cloud angrily opened the fridge. "You 'want baba'? Here's your baba!" He yelled, almost slamming the bottle in front of his two-year-old.

Alex looked at his dad with tears in his eyes before gleefully grabbing the bottle and shoving it in his mouth, gulping loudly.

Cloud rubbed his temple. "I save the world and I can't even get a two year old to respect me." He mused.

Alex finished and threw the bottle to the floor. He then looked up at Cloud and giggled, his voice reaching pitches Cloud didn't even know existed. He then held his arms out. "Da up!" He screamed.

"Yeah, okay." Cloud sighed, picking his son up. He looked into his son's eyes, seeing his own reflection. He began to notice Alex's features, such as his hair, which was now starting to become tangled in certain clumps on the top of his head. He also had his mother's big, wide eyes, although they were a different shade of brown.

Alex interrupted his train of thought by giggling again. "Hey," He said. Alex learned this word by watching his parents greet people, and Tifa always got a kick whenever Alex said it.

"Hey." Cloud smiled back.

END FLASHBACK

Tifa was still sat on the sofa, pouting. Despite Tifa's fragile mood and the fact that she was watching her favourite show, Cloud decided to take a risk and stood in front of her. Tifa scowled at him, a look that seemed to get darker as Cloud grabbed her hand.

Cloud had actually felt slightly less scared when he battled Sephiroth. "Can't you just be a little happy? I mean, boys are pretty cool, too..."

Tifa smacked his hand away and folded her arms. "Boys are smelly. I want a girl."

Cloud grinned and began to softly poke Tifa in the ribs. "Come on, Tifa... Come on! Come on! Boys are cool and you know it! Boys..." Cloud was cut short by Tifa giving his forearm a very hard smack. For a split second, Cloud looked genuinely hurt. "Ow...!"

"I'm watching tv. Go away." Tifa said simply.

Cloud raised his hands defensively. "Alright, alright..." As he walked away, Alex started to toddle towards his mother. "I wouldn't, pal. Not if you want to live." Cloud said with a sly smile.

Alex ignored him and, with a great effort, managed to climb onto the sofa by himself. Tifa looked at her son. He had never managed to do that before, and at this point, Tifa would normally squeal at Cloud to get a camera. This time, however, she just sighed with annoyance. "What do you want, smelly?"

Alex grinned. "I'm not smelly!"

Tifa grinned back. "Oh yes, you are!" She then raised her hands so that her fingers were crooked downwards. "You are horrible and smelly and do you know what you deserve?"

Alex's grin got ever wider. "Oh no, mama!"

Tifa beamed and lunged for Alex, pinning him down gently. "Oh yes!" She then began to tickle Alex. Alex screamed with glee, wriggling and thrashing underneath his mother. The laughter of the two of them soon seemed to meld into one harmonious sound, which was music to Cloud's ears.

Cloud then scratched his head. "Mood swings... Can't wait for nine months of this." He said to himself.

"Well, this is where you'll be sleeping..." Yuffie blushed as she led Vincent to the couch in her living room. "Not exactly Costa del Sol, but by gawd, is it homely!" She giggled nervously, and it was all she could do to stop herself from bursting out laughing. _Why am I acting this way_?

Vincent stared emotionlessly at Yuffie. "Just so you know, I appreciate this. Thanks."

Yuffie was about to reply when she heard a giggle. She turned around and a crude drawing was thrust at her by her young daughter. Yuffie took the drawing and grinned. "What'cha drawn there, squirt?"

Rikku grinned back, and Vincent noted just how similar her smile was to Yuffie's. "I drawed my daddy, mummy!"

Yuffie looked closer at the scrawls, and immediately went pale. Her little squirt had drawn a simple circle with a straight line coming out of the bottom, with very simple stick-figure hands and legs, holding a much smaller stick figure by the hand, a stick figure which, Yuffie noted with a gulp, was probably Rikku. She tried to play this off the way she normally would when Rikku gave her a drawing by giving her trademark smirk, but she didn't really succeed. She then mumbled, "C'mon, you can do better than that..." and feebly handed the paper back to her daughter.

Rikku took it, said "Okay, mummy..." softly and sat back down on the floor.

Yuffie turned back to Vincent, looking on the brink of tears. "Yeah, it's no problem, really..."

Vincent frowned and craned his neck, looking at Rikku busily doing another little doodle. "Do you always say that when she brings you drawings?"

Yuffie looked at the ground. "Well, yeah... Is that bad?"

Vincent half-smiled. "I wouldn't say so. It seems to increase her resolve."

Yuffie smiled to herself. "_Resolve... Rikku has plenty of that, alright..."_

FLASHBACK

Yuffie held the small cookie in between her index finger and thumb, dangling it in the air in front of her nose. She then crouched down so that she was at Riku's level. "You want this? Then come on over and get it, chick!"

Rikku sat, bewildered, at the other end of the hall. There were a good fifteen feet between her and her mother. Now that Rikku was nearly two years old, Yuffie had decided that enough was enough and that her daughter needed to learn how to walk. Rikku blinked. "Cookie..."

Yuffie sighed and looked at the cookie teasingly. "Yeah, it's a cookie, all right." She then took a sniff of it. "And it's all yours if you walk over here."

Rikku began by shakily standing up. She then wobbled in place for a couple of seconds, before clumsily stepping forward. Much to Yuffie's disappointment, her daughter flopped forwards onto the floor with a loud smack. She then started to cry.

Yuffie sternly shook her head. "Not gonna happen, sport. Try to get over here by yourself."

Rikku sniffed, wiped her eyes and stood back up. "Okay..." She then managed to take an extremely awkward first step before falling flat on her face again. Yuffie was ready to give up, but to her surprise, Rikku got up again, and this time managed to take three steps before falling over. Yuffie just watched in shock as her daughter finally managed to reach her without falling over, charging like a lunatic. When she didn't give her the cookie right away, Rikku began to scream, "MY COOKIE, MY COOKIE!"

Yuffie chuckled. "Yup, your cookie." She then handed her daughter the cookie and watched with content as she scarfed it down.

END FLASHBACK

Cloud smiled. The family had just sat in the living room for hours, with Tifa and Alex taking occasional breaks to play with his toys on the floor. Now the room was basked in a serene darkness, with Tifa and Alex both fast asleep, Alex snoozing peacefully with his head resting on Tifa's lap. Cloud eased himself up out of his favourite easy chair and gently nudged his wife, who stirred soundly.

"Mmmm... Cloud?" She yawned and rubbed her eyes. She looked dozily at her husband. "How long have I been asleep?"

Cloud shrugged. "About an hour. It's almost ten, so Alex is up far too late."

Tifa frowned. "How come you let him stay up so late?"

Cloud scratched his head. "Because... Because he was asleep?"

Tifa shook her head and raised her eyebrows, the world-renowned sign of 'sure, whatever'. "Sure, whatever." She said as she gently picked Alex up, supporting his body with her left hand while using her right to gently clutch him to her shoulder. She very carefully stood up and smiled at Cloud as Alex cooed in her arms. "I love this kid."

Cloud grinned. "So, you wouldn't mind having another boy?"

Tifa mockingly glared at Cloud, said, "Don't push it." And slowly made her way up the stairs.

Cloud smiled to himself and followed them, basking in the knowledge that his life was finally the best it could possibly.

And nothing could ever, ever change that.

_FINISHED AT LAST! Yippee, that feels good._

_The fic isn't finished, you understand, but this chapter took me, like, a year. The next chapter will focus on Yuffie's upcoming custody trial. Please R & R!_

_-Adrianics_


End file.
